Green Bay Packers TE Tucker Kraft had six catches, 53 yards, and a touchdown against the Carolina Panthers in Week 8.
SOURCE: USA TODAY
Why It Matters: It has taken some time for Kraft to resemble the breakout star he was becoming before tearing his ACL almost a year ago to the day. He seems to be rounding into form, however, catching 10 passes for 101 yards and a pair of touchdowns over the past five days. Kraft has simply looked stronger, and there have been no signs of the dropped passes that dogged him earlier this season. While he hasn't entered that top echelon of fantasy tight ends with the likes of Brock Bowers and Trey McBride, Kraft has solidified his spot as a top-10 option at the position.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Six receptions for Tucker Kraft in prime time

#kraft #carolina #panthers

Commanders WR Treylon Burks downgraded on injury report before Eagles game appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Washington Commanders just put star wide receiver Terry McLaurin on season-ending injured reserve after his knee injury against the San Francisco 49ers. The Commanders could now find themselves down another wideout when they take on the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8 following their bye week.
Treylon Burks has been downgraded in the team's latest injury report, per ESPN's John Keim. After being limited on Wednesday, Burks did not participate on Thursday due to a foot injury.
In his fifth year in the league, the 26-year-old Burks is on course to surpass his debut season with the Commanders last year. In just five games, he is one catch away from matching his 10 receptions last year. His 152 receiving yards and two touchdowns are already more than his total last season.
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#Commanders #injury #last #week

The Green Bay Packers are 5-3 after beating the Carolina Panthers by a 27-19 final score on "Thursday Night Football" from Lambeau Field. There were **** ps along the way, especially early and late, but the Packers got three touchdown passes from Jordan Love and six sacks from Jonathan Gannon's defense to power what ended up being a winning performance.
Highlighting the good, the bad and the ugly coming out of Thursday night's win:
Jordan Love during the first three quarters, the adversity defense, and the pass-rush: Love was on fire for the first 45 minutes, completing 26 of his first 33 passes for 262 yards and three scores. He threw a pick early in the fourth quarter, starting a disappointing finish for the offense overall, but the Packers quarterback was terrific for most of the contest, playing on time from the pocket and consistently finding completions. Jonathan Gannon's defense was dominant at times, allowing only three points off three Packers turnovers, and the only three points came after the fumbled opening kickoff that gave the Panthers the ball in field goal range. It took a few crazy conversions for the Panthers to score a touchdown in the second half. The Packers were dominant up front, sacking Bryce Young six times and consistently disrupting the pocket.
The start, and most of the finish: How did the Packers open the game? By fumbling away the opening kickoff, dropping three first-quarter passes and committing a pre-snap penalty. The turnover spotted the Panthers three early points. To Green Bay's credit, the first quarter ended with the Packers leading. During most of the second and third quarters, the Packers were in complete control, leading 20-10 at the half and 27-13 with a chance to dagger the Panthers to start the fourth quarter. But Jordan Love threw a pick on the second play of the fourth, turning the game sharply, and the Panthers eventually scored on a 70-yard drive and had the ball down one score with a chance to tie the game. What should have been a comfortable, two- or three-score win ended up being a nail biter because the Packers made costly mistakes and couldn't run the ball. One more bad: Trey Smack missed an extra point, so the kicking worries continue to linger. The lost point mattered because it kept the Panthers within one score in the fourth quarter.
The run game. The Packers returned Aaron Banks to the lineup at left guard, and Josh Jacobs got a full workload against the NFL's worst run defense entering Week 8, but it wasn't nearly enough to awaken Green Bay's dormant run game. Jacobs turned 21 rushes into only 39 yards, and 18 of the Packers' 66 rushing yards came on a well-executed Savion Williams gadget play. The 25 designed runs to running backs gained all of 48 yards. Jacobs didn't have a run longer than six yards. It's possible the Packers run game just isn't going to happen in 2026. This is a historically bad start -- the Packers are just the 14th team since 1935 to rush for fewer than 500 yards

We're getting closer and closer to the college basketball season! Next up in our countdown is Ben McCollum's wife's favorite player: Peyton McCollum!
#5 – Peyton McCollum, G, 6'2" 190 lbs
2nd year; Maryville, MO; Waukee Northwest
2025-26: Injury redshirt
McCollum was one of four freshman to join Ben McCollum's first high school recruiting class, alongside Trevin Jirak, Tate Sage, and Trey Thompson. He is, of course, the son of head coach Ben McCollum.
McCollum was scored over 1000 points during his time in Maryville before he followed his father to the Des Moines area when he took the drake job. In his senior season for Waukee Northwest, he averaged 13 points and 5 ****** ists on a team which fell to Jirak's Valley squad in the state final.

#closer

Kings' Darius Acuff Jr.'s bonkers first half includes monster tomahawk throwdown appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Sacramento Kings have hit a slow start to the 2026 NBA season. But NBA Draft find Darius Acuff Jr. is rising as an early highlight. Now he's added a monster tomahawk throwdown to his reel, coming against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Acuff took flight in transition, then put Trey Murphy III on a poster.
The recent Arkansas standout went off in the Big Easy. He posted these final first half numbers inside the Smoothie King Center.
Acuff even hit eight of his first 11 shot attempts. He's emerging as the new fast break weapon coach Doug Christie can lean into. Including in the name of reigniting the glory days that involved Christie.

#christie #tomahawk

Packers' Tucker Kraft scores TD nearly a year after brutal injury vs. same Panthers team appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Green Bay Packers have wide receiver Matthew Golden suited up for their Thursday Night Football game against the Carolina Panthers despite injury concerns. Golden's availability is a big boost for the Packers as he has been the team's second-leading receiver behind Christian Watson this season.
However, it was their third receiver, tight end Tucker Kraft, who got the first touchdown of the game after the Panthers opened the scoring with a field goal.
On third down in the first quarter, quarterback Jordan Love threw an absolute laser of a pass that was able to find Kraft despite pressure from two Panthers defenders. A delighted Kraft then went over to the crowd for a Lambeau Leap.
It was Kraft's third touchdown of the season, tying him with Golden for second on the team. Unfortunately, Packers kicker Trey Smack continued his recent struggles as he missed the extra point, keeping the score at 6-3.

#kraft #tucker #golden #injury

I didn't think I was going to have to post this midway through a game, but after Green Bay Packers kicker Trey Smack missed his first extra point after missing two chip shots last week, it seems pretty clear that it's a question of when — not if — Smack will be replaced. Going into this game, I had done some research on who is available, so I want to share that with you folks.
I looked at all kickers who even attempted a field goal from 2024 to 2026, the last three seasons. Outside of punters, there are a total of 55 players who have attempted kicks. Of those 55 players, 46 of them are under contract for other teams or appear to be out of the league entirely, either due to injury or retirement.
As far as players on the street go, here's the list that the Packers can look at during their "mini-bye." Generally, kickers are worked out before they're signed, not poached off a practice squad, so I'm not going to include the practice squadders in this list.
Since 2024: 38 of 45 (84 percent field goal rate)
Recent: Released by Dolphins, 10/20

#packers #game #kickers #field

The Packers stuck with kicker Trey Smack after his misses from 26 and 35 in a 20-17 loss to the Lions last week. It's looking like a bad decision.
The sixth-round rookie hit the left upright on a PAT try with 5:08 remaining in the first quarter, his third missed extra point of the season. He has now missed eight kicks.
The Packers lead the Panthers 6-3.
Packers wide receiver Coleman Owen fumbled the opening kickoff, and linebacker Nick Hampton recovered for the Panthers. Carolina gained only 8 yards in the drive before Ryan Fitzgerald kicked a 39-yard field goal.
The Packers took the lead on their second possession, with Jordan Love hitting Tucker Kraft for a 12-yard score.

#missed #yard #lions #coleman

Liverpool have developed a reputation for having one of the best academies in world football in recent years.
The club has the ability to show prospective additions a clear pathway to the first-team, and the Reds' senior squad has been littered with academy graduates in recent years.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott, Conor Bradley, Jarell Quansah and Coaimhin Kelleher are just some of the examples of recent graduates from the Kirkby to have become important parts of the team at Anfield.
The club have adopted the strategy of recruiting some of the world's most promising youngsters to the academy, and it is clearly working.
Lewis Koumas, Trey Nyoni and Rio Ngumoha have all established themselves as important first-team squad players in the early days of Andoni Iraola's tenure at Anfield.

#first

Liverpool's midfield is probably going to be their main area of focus in the January transfer window.
At the moment, the Anfield outfit only have four central midfielders among their ranks with one of them being 19-year-old Trey Nyoni.
And, although each player is good, this season, only Alexis Mac Allister has really met expectations.
Indeed, Nyoni has done well when called upon but, since he's still so young, he can't be relied upon for every game.
Others, such as Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch have failed to make their mark which is why so many midfielders have been linked with a Liverpool switch.

#nyoni #midfielders

The overall performance certainly wasn't perfect, but the Green Bay Packers still rolled to a two-score win over the visiting Dallas Cowboys on "Sunday Night Football" from Lambeau Field in Week 6. Brian Schottenheimer's team was well-rested after playing on Thursday night in Week 5 and not lacking motivation after a humbling home defeat in primetime, but the Packers still raced out to a 17-0 lead and ended up leading the game by two scores for most of the night. Matt LaFleur's team has won three straight games and is 4-2 overall, an acceptable record given the ups and downs of the early season.
Three big things from the Packers' win over the Cowboys:
Facing Dak Prescott, Javonte Williams, CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens without Micah Parsons, Edgerrin Cooper and Javon Hargrave provided a big test for Jonathan Gannon's defense, and the group passed it with flying colors. The Cowboys managed only 13 points, of which seven came in garbage time, and Gannon continually had Prescott under pressure and making rushed and confused decisions against the blitz or the pre-snap appearance of a blitz. Prescott averaged only 4.8 yards per attempt, and the Packers got a pair of interceptions inside their own 30-yard line and a pair of fourth down stops on pass attempts in the fourth quarter. More and more, the home opener disaster against the Atlanta Falcons is looking like a blip on the radar. The Packers have allowed fewer than 14 points in three straight games since.
The Packers offensive line took several steps forward in games against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chicago Bears, largely due to the settling of performances at both guard spots. But Sunday night represented a step in the wrong direction and provided evidence that the problems along the offensive line aren't solved quite yet. Jordan Love was under pressure on 45.5 percent of his pass attempts, his highest percentage since Week 1. And the run game accomplished next to nothing, averaging only 2.2 yards per attempt overall and 1.8 yards on runs by Pierre Strong Jr., MarShawn Lloyd and Kaleb Johnson. The Packers got by because Love was excellent under pressure early, and the defense made enough stops so that the struggles moving the ball in the second half didn't matter. The inconsistency of the offensive line, drops in big spots and untimely penalties still look like the Packers' biggest hurdles.
Rookie kicker Trey Smack calmed fears of any prolonged struggles by making all five of his kicks, including all three field goals. Even on a breezy night inside Lambeau Field, Smack enjoyed a bounce-back performance -- even if only one of his five kicks was from over 40 yards (a 44-yard field goal). More importantly, Smack didn't let last week's issues bleed into a new opportunity. Against the Bears, his three misses cost the Packers seven points. On Sunday night, Smack's five converted kicks created 11 points in a 10-point win.

#field

Kansas City Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker has made it a weekly tradition to surpass the already-high expectations of Chiefs Kingdom. If he didn't blow our minds enough by gashing the Denver Broncos for 173 yards on the ground in the season opener, he doubled down against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 4 with 177 yards and a 76-yard run that turned the game in the second half.
Coming out of the bye week, there was reasonable speculation that rookie running back Emmett Johnson would spell Walker to keep the talented lead back fresh. Instead, Walker took the load again, gaining 139 yards from scrimmage on 21 touches.
None of his carries matched the long touchdown run that gave the Chiefs an early 9-0 lead over the Los Angeles Chargers.
On third-and-1, quarterback Patrick Mahomes came out of an under-center formation to hand off to Walker off counter action; right guard Trey Smith and second-year tight end Jake Briningstool made the key blocks to spring him in the first quarter.
"The 33-yarder was pretty open," Walker said in his post-game press conference. "(Tight end) Jake (Briningstool) came across and kicked out; there left was open."

#walker #back #week

Ole Miss news: Pete Golding's NSFW comment says it all about Kiffin return appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Perhaps the biggest game of the Week 3 slate in college football is Lane Kiffin and LSU football heading to play against Pete Golding and Ole Miss. The villainous nature of Lane Kiffin is well documented. After leaving the Rebels last season before the playoffs, he allegedly left his dog behind while also trying to bring Ole Miss players to LSU. After all that, he tried to bring in players who were on NFL rosters in the offseason, and LSU ended up being sued. Now, Kiffin is returning to Ole Miss for a Week 3 game, looking for revenge.
As the game between Ole Miss and LSU approaches, Rebels head coach Pete Golding is summing up what it is like to welcome Kiffin back to town, per Trey Wallace.
"To me, it's like high school homecoming for these dudes. Like, if you focus on the wrong s**t, that homecoming dance ain't very fun after you get your **** beat on a Friday night. So we got to make sure we're doing everything right throughout the week to get the outcome that we want," Golding said.
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#rebels

The NFL, perhaps more than any other professional sports league, is built by its little moments — the numerous individual tiles inside the mosaic of 60 minutes of Sunday football.
The little moment that might have stood out the brightest from the Arizona Cardinals' 26-14 upset win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday wasn't necessarily Jeremiyah Love's or Trey McBride's first touchdowns of the year.
It might not have even been the sight of new head coach Mike LaFleur, fighting off emotion on the sideline while calling for victory formation, as he became the first non-interim Cardinals coach to win his first game since Don Coryell did so in 1973.
It was a moment following a poor play in the fourth quarter. With under five minutes to play, a third-and-short pass play saw QB Jacoby Brissett run out of both time and room, forcing him out of bounds behind the line of scrimmage.
As Brissett walked off the field, LaFleur — animatedly — took responsibility, offering a "my bad" to his quarterback.

#sunday #cardinals #brissett

The Seattle Seahawks are 1-0, so it's time to start scouting their next opponent.
The Arizona Cardinals shocked the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 1 with a 26-14 win in which Mike LaFleur became the franchise's first non-interim head coach to win their first game in charge. The matchup was projected as one of the opening week's most lopsided in favor of Jim Harbaugh and Los Angeles, who were coming off an 11-6 record in 2025. Los Angeles made the playoffs and lost to the eventual AFC champion New England Patriots in the Wild Card round, albeit without either of their starting offensive tackles—Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt—who were both expected to boost the offense upon their return this season. Arizona's defense had other ideas, and became one of the biggest surprises of any unit across Week 1's Sunday slate, while their offense simply looked more talented and outplayed LA with complementary football. That's what the Seahawks will be looking for in Week 2.
The Cardinals defense played with an energy that stifled Justin Herbert and new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, who only held the ball for 51 plays and 22:29. Arizona ran 21 more plays and had the ball for 15:02 more of the game (more than an entire quarter?!) When watching this game, the attitude from Arizona's defense seemed to disregard the stature of its opponent. LaFleur retained defensive coordinator Nick Rallis, who Phoenix-based sports radio host John Gambadoro credits for helping set the temperature.
It's easy to see Rallis' results. The intensity of the defense that showed up on tape is just as evident on paper. His Cardinals defense ranks second to last in blitz rate so far this season, yet they held McDaniel and Herbert to a measly 2-for-8 on third downs and 0-for-3 on fourth downs. Their front seven was far more formidable than the Chargers on the day, producing 17 pressures on 55 snaps while LA could only muster 12 on 75 opportunities. On the flipside, the Cardinals' offensive line has been projected as their downfall this season. The Seahawks have a clear opportunity to establish their presence as a physically dominant team if they kill the Cardinals momentum. This will be the game for elite run blockers like AJ Barner and run stoppers like Uchenna Nwosu to put the new age film community on watch.
Offensive talent is far from the problem in Arizona. Trey McBride is the best tight end in football. They've got two running backs in Jeremiyah Love and Tyler Allgeier who can both be a problem for any team. Marvin Harrison Jr. was a matchup nightmare against the Seahawks last season. In Week 3, he had one of the best battles against Devon Witherspoon and Riq Woolen of any wide receiver all year. When partnered with a seasoned veteran quarterback with a quick release, they were able to make life easy on their OL. Jacoby Brissett looked like at least an average starting QB, completing 27/37 passes for a respectable 73.0% completion rate while taking only 1 sack on 39 dropbacks. Loo

GREEN BAY – Even before he took 3 points off the board for a fourth-and-1 attempt in the fourth quarter, Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur was antsy about how much he was using rookie kicker Trey Smack.
The modern NFL has provided touchdowns over field goals. In a road environment, LaFleur was acutely aware of how much his offense was settling for field goals.
"Anytime in this league, if you kick enough field goals," LaFleur said, "you're able to get beat. That's essentially what happened. We kicked too many field goals when we had opportunities. We didn't take advantage of short fields at times."
By the fourth quarter, the Packers twice had settled for a field goal after reaching the red zone. That doesn't include a drive before halftime that started on Minnesota's 36-yard line that resulted in no points, mostly because of penalties.
When Smack connected on a 40-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter, his fourth of the game, the Packers had only an 8-point lead. Smack's missed extra point after the Packers' opening touchdown in the first quarter in part prevented the field goal from making it a two-possession lead, but so did the lack of red zone efficiency.

#packers #fourth #goals #green

For a while, it looked like the same ol' Arizona Cardinals' defense that lost nine consecutive games to end the 2025 season with inside linebacker Mack Wilson Sr. on injured reserve because of a serious injury to his ribs.
On their first possession, the Los Angeles Chargers moved effortlessly on an eight-play, 77-yard drive that included three receptions by wide receiver Ladd McConkey for 60 yards to tie the game at seven with 4:22 to play in the first quarter.
The Cardinals took a 10-7 lead on a Chad Ryland 27-yard field goal after which the Chargers traveled 76 yards, gaining 62 on nine plays and faced fourth-and-three at the Cardinals' three-yard line after the two-minute warning.
Eschewing a chip-shot field-goal attempt, quarterback Justin Herbert dropped back to pass, but before he could even set up to throw, defensive lineman Dante Stills was on him after cleanly beating guard Trey Pipkins III and sacked Herbert for a 10-yard loss.
The Cardinals followed that with a drive that ended the half with a Ryland 44-yard field goal and a 13-7 halftime lead.

#cardinals #first

Our inaugural "Team of the Month" poll came down to the wire between a strip-sack touchdown and a toe-tapping deflected catch along the sidelines.
Westwood football's Levon "Trey" Simmons III claimed TC Palm's August "Play of the Month" honors, narrowly edging out Martin County's fumble return touchdown with 55.6 percent of the vote.
On the play, Westwood quarterback Elize Pierre rolled out to his left and attempted to complete a pass to junior running back Najja Martin. The ball bounced off Martin's hands and up into the air after a collision with a Palm Beach Gardens defender.
Simmons swooped into grab the reception and got two feet in bounds before stepping out of play. Westwood went on to defeat Palm Beach Gardens 21-7 on Aug. 24.
You can view the play, as well as the rest of August's "Play of the Month" nominees," in the following video:

#month #martin

Joey McGuire is optimistic the Texas Tech football team will have more weapons on the field of Galaxy Stadium for the Red Raiders' showdown against Houston.
Safety Brenden Jordan has wrapped his two-game suspension for a violation of team rules and will return to action on Friday night. As for a pair of injured starters, that's up to how the short week of preparation goes.
Outside linebacker Trey White (back) has missed the first two games of the season while tight end Terrance Carter Jr. was in a boot before the game and missed Texas Tech's 35-24 win over Oregon State.
"Trey and TC are trending in the right direction," McGuire said. "They both had good runs this morning. They're doing their recovery stuff right now. Trey will get a little bit individually this afternoon and then TC will get some scout periods this afternoon. Feeling good as long as we don't have any setbacks to getting those guys back."
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: What does Texas Tech football's injury report look like for Houston game?

#houston #missed

Carter Bear gave the Detroit Red Wings exactly the kind of opening performance they wanted from one of their most important young forwards.
Bear registered 10 shots on goal and an ***** ist Saturday as Detroit rallied from a two-goal third-period deficit to defeat the Dallas Stars 4-3 in a shootout in its Prospect Tournament opener at the BELFOR Training Center.
According to Detroit Hockey Now's game report, Bear was Detroit's most visible offensive player. His ***** ist came on Jesse Kiiskinen's second-period power-play goal, which tied the game 1-1. Bear started alongside Nate Danielson and Kiiskinen on Detroit's top line.
Detroit eventually needed late goals from Noah Dower Nilsson and Théo Rochette before Trey Augustine made eight shootout saves and Kienan Draper scored the winner on the Red Wings' eighth attempt.
Bear's performance stood out even in a game loaded with notable prospects.

#detroit #carter

The Washington Huskies have a problem on offense.
Jedd Fisch's unit has now scored 40 points in their first two games combined, ten fewer points than the Huskies were favored to win those two games by (23.5 against Washington State, 26.5 against Utah State). Washington has finished with more than 350 yards of offense in both of those games, but has found itself completely unable to move the ball consistently or score points efficiently through the first two games.
Quarterback Demond Williams Jr. has struggled to throw the ball in rhythm, often opting to scramble and utilize his talent as a runner to keep the offense on track. Washington has needed that from him, too: Williams has been the Huskies' leading rusher in both games as the running back depth has been decimated by injuries to Jordan Washington, Quaid Carr, and Jayden Limar.
But there has also been opportunity for Williams to throw the ball more effectively. He's missed several what should have been easy throws in the flat and placed longer throws into the end zone out of reach of his receivers more often than he's found those plays. It hasn't been all on Williams, however: starting X receiver Christian Moss left after two snaps in the Apple Cup, and starting Z receiver Rashid Williams left early on Saturday against Utah State, thrusting true freshmen Jordan Clay and Trez Davis into action. Dezmen Roebuck and running back Trey Cooley both also dropped passes that could have easily been touchdowns on Saturday, further putting the offense behind schedule and making for a messy operation.
"As an offense, we shot ourselves in the foot a lot," Williams told the media after the game.

#utah

New Orleans Saints RB Audric Estime (thigh) was placed on the Reserve/Injured list Saturday, Sept. 12. The team also signed practice squad TE Treyton Welch to the 53-man roster. Terms of the contract were not disclosed.
SOURCE: NewOrleansSaints.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Audric Estime to miss multiple weeks

#orleans #saints #reserve #saturday

The Green Bay Packers and tight end Tucker Kraft have reportedly agreed to a four-year, $75 million contract extension, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
Kraft's new deal, which runs through the 2030 season, includes a $26.5 million signing bonus and its maximum value could reach as high as $92 million. He is now the highest-paid tight end in the NFL.
Both sides have wanted to get a deal done, it was just a matter of whether an agreement could be reached before Week 1 or linger into the season.
The $19.66 million annual salary is ahead of fellow tight ends George Kittle of the San Francisco 49ers ($19.1M), Trey McBride of the Arizona Cardinals ($19M), Kyle Pitts of the Atlanta Falcons ($18M), and Isaiah Likely of the New York Giants ($13.3M), per Spotrac.
Kraft, 25, had a breakout year in 2024 when he caught 50 passes for 707 yards and seven touchdowns. He was on pace for career numbers last season, but suffered a torn ACL in Week 9. Through eight games, he had 489 receiving yards and six touchdowns.

#tight

The Indianapolis Colts open the regular season at home against the Baltimore Ravens.
To help us preview this matchup, Glenn Erby, the managing editor of Ravens Wire, answered a handful of our questions to provide some insights into this Baltimore team.
Ravens Wire: Minter has been organized, direct, and consistent since taking over. He brings energy without manufacturing it, and players have responded to his detailed but collaborative approach. He has also allowed his coordinators to establish their identities while remaining heavily involved with the defense. The biggest takeaway is that he appears comfortable leading the entire operation rather than simply functioning as a defensive-minded head coach. The regular season will present different challenges, but the transition from John Harbaugh has been smoother than many expected.
Ravens Wire: Baltimore's defensive front should be its biggest strength. The Ravens added Trey Hendrickson to a group that could regain Nnamdi Madubuike while also featuring Calais Campbell, Travis Jones, and second-round pick Zion Young. Roquan Smith and Kyle Hamilton give the defense elite talent behind that front. If Madubuike remains healthy, Baltimore should be able to stop the run without sacrificing its ability to pressure quarterbacks.
Ravens Wire: The interior offensive line is the primary concern. Baltimore will start Jovaughn Gwyn at center and rookie first-round pick Vega Ioane at right guard. Gwyn has never started an NFL game, while Ioane will make his regular-season debut against DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart. The Ravens are also installing Declan Doyle's offense, so communication and protection errors could occur early. Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry can cover plenty of weaknesses, but Indianapolis has the personnel to test that inexperienced interior.

#Ravens

Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride will play with a refined passion in 2026. With the 2025 season in his rearview mirror and the Los Angeles Chargers ahead, McBride is hoping that his passion and premier pass-catching can spark the beginning of a new chapter for the franchise.
The Chargers lost defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, who moved on to a head coaching position with the Baltimore Ravens. Still, Chargers safety Derwin James Jr. is on the roster and his skillset poses a significant opposition for McBride. Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur still has plans on making McBride the focus of the team offense and it'll come down to pure will to determine whether or not McBride can muscle up.
The Cardinals seem to have a competent offensive personnel group at the skills positions but time will tell how their offensive line fares in 2026. Play-action and the quick passing game are both strategies where LaFleur and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett are likely to call on McBride's jersey number. McBride is quick and physical, plus his route running makes him a mismatch for most opposing linebackers and safeties.
Ultimately, if the Cardinals are to stand a chance on Sunday, they will rely on their passing attack to propel the offense and that'll mean that McBride must be exceptionally magnificent. The Chargers allowed just 19.8 points per game in 2025, but without the mastermind of Minter, McBride might locate a few breaches that can be exploited.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire's Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple Podcasts.

#play #passion #coordinator

Kansas City Chiefs DB Chamarri Conner (knee) and OT Josh Simmons (back) did not practice Friday, Sept. 11. DT Chris Jones (calf) was a limited participant, and Jack Cochrane (knee), DE Ashton Gillotte (foot), OG Trey Smith (hip), CB L'Jarius Sneed (knee) and DE R Mason Thomas (hamstring) fully participated.
SOURCE: Chiefs.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chiefs practice report for Friday

#chiefs #practice #chamarri #josh

During a beach outing, then-5-year-old Terry Potter Hedden III — now "Trey" to NMSU teammates and fans — picked up a football and threw a perfect spiral to his stepmom. It was then Hedden was destined to be a quarterback with a supportive blended family. His parents and stepparents "made sure I made every tryout. They took me to camps. They helped me meet the coaches I wanted to learn from." And they attended every game, including during his two years at Furman and this season with the Aggies. After a 10-percentage-point jump in accuracy from his freshman season, Hedden entered the portal to "raise the ceiling a little bit" in pursuit of future pro opportunities. NMSU head coach Tony Sanchez's spread attack offered protection (312 pounds an O-lineman) and speedy targets. Slot receiver TK King has been GPS-clocked at nearly 23 mph and laser-timed at 20.74 seconds over 200 meters. "The biggest thing for me is I've got to remember that on game day, he's a little bit faster than he is in practice," Hedden said of King. "When he's running a route, you can throw it out there and he'll turn it on. We talk about it in the meeting room. Go make him run 100 meters to catch the ball." King's average target depth is 21 yards. He has catch-and-dashes of 46, 42 and 34 yards. The Aggies have sets of four and five receivers or up to two tight ends. Running back James Jones has no fumbles or negative-yard rushes in 30 carries. Jones also is an effective blocker who can roll into the flats. Hedden is 80% accurate on screens, hitches and check-down throws. "The quarterback in this offense is really a distributor," Hedden said. "We really focus on the things we're good at, and we repeat those things, and find new ways to do those things every week. It's really been a lot of fun to play in this offense with these coaches."
The Aggies' base is chaos, with shifts, movements and glove-to-glove combat in the trenches and running lanes. "When things get so cranky, like how many blitzes and stunts, it looks like Star Wars to us," weakside linebacker Sone Aupiu said. His first two NMSU seasons, Aupiu played middle linebacker. He moved to will linebacker last year but still trains at all second-tier positions, including jack, the stand-up edge defender. Helped by playing on the narrow side of the formation, Aupiu has freedom to jump lanes. "When it comes to gap schemes, that's what I love," he said. "Coming my way to the boundary, I'm looking to hit 'em." His father grew up in Samoa, his mother in New Zealand, where rugby was the favored sport. He said he aspires to play professional rugby. But for now, Aupiu said, "I chose a different route, which was football. Everybody else on my mom's side chose rugby." Aupiu received a few college offers. But after an official visit to Las Cruces, he decided to be an Aggie. He said he had to adjust to the culture change from Long Beach, Calif., such as green chili served with everything. And to fatherhood — he and his wife have a 3-yea

Liverpool still have a lot of work that needs to be done on their team.
The Anfield outfit's depth outside of their starting XI isn't the best with players such as Lewis Koumas and Trey Nyoni taking up prominent places in their squad.
Indeed, the fact that youngsters are being used as regular first-team players is obviously a breath of fresh air from Arne Slot's time in charge of the club but, for a team of Liverpool's calibre, they shouldn't have to be relying on players such as Koumas to play regular roles.
In the future, he could obviously come good and meet his potential but, at the moment, it's not ideal for the Reds to be using him week-in and week-out.
Obviously, some additions need to be made to Liverpool's attack before they're on the same level as some of their ***** le rivals but, there are also other areas among their ranks that could do with another upgrade or two.

#obviously

Kansas City Chiefs DB Chamarri Conner (knee) and OT Josh Simmons (back) did not practice Thursday, Sept. 10. LB Jack Cochrane (knee), DE Ashton Gillotte (foot), OG Trey Smith (hip), CB L'Jarius Sneed (knee) and DE R Mason Thomas (hamstring) fully participated.
SOURCE: Chiefs.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Thursday practice report for Kansas City

#chiefs #chamarri #conner #simmons

Welcome back, readers! I am happy to return for a second year as The Sporting Tribune's fantasy football ****** yst. If you are new here, my mission is to help fantasy managers with any dilemmas or questions they may have through the course of the season to ultimately win their leagues. For the next 17 weeks, I will produce weekly fantasy content that will go over the waiver wire, rankings, and Start 'Em, Sit 'Em columns.
Being a fantasy manager often means having to make difficult roster decisions, but I aim to take some of the guesswork out of it with my Start 'Em and Sit 'Em column for every position. It goes without saying that I won't include obvious calls like "start Trey McBride" or "sit Tommy DeVito." Instead, I search for players that could be perceived as fringe that could propel your lineups for weekly wins.
As always, if you have any questions or don't see your players on here, feel free to follow me on Twitter (X) – JamesNewell96 and send me a message, where I typically respond in a timely manner.
Kyle Pitts Sr. @ PIT (Projected FPTS - 9.4): Despite the news of Cooper Rush likely being named the Week One starter, I am still high on Pitts. He finished last season as one of the top fantasy tight ends with Kirk Cousins under center. Besides, Atlanta doesn't really have many options for pass catchers after Bijan Robinson and Drake London, and new head coach Kevin Stefanski typically uses his tight ends. Pittsburgh is also a favorable matchup, allowing 11 touchdowns and the third-most points to the position last season.
Dallas Goedert vs. WSH (Projected FPTS - 8.5): Goedert finished last season with a career-high 11 touchdowns. While it's easy to ****** ume some regression, the Eagles traded A.J. Brown, and rookie wideout Makai Lemon is coming off a hamstring injury. Philly's passing attack will likely feature DeVonta Smith and Goedert for at least the early part of the season. He will take on a Commanders team that allowed 12 touchdowns the season before (tied for the second-most). Goedert should expect to see a fair share of targets, making him worth putting in your lineup.

#fantasy #touchdowns #projected